Chapter 5 — The Scholar's Return: Saving My Sister, Crushing Foes, and Carrying the School

I punished each and every one of them thoroughly until they were begging for mercy. Only when I finally stopped did I notice that Thuy still sat perched on the garden wall, her luminous eyes fixed on me with a mixture of awe and devotion. I held out my hand, gritting my teeth. "Jump down, I will catch you." Teasing aside, Thuy had been working herself to the bone, and her scores were skyrocketing. I had genuinely believed she was a guaranteed admission for the elite national universities, but just a week later, she suddenly began to falter. One day she had a splitting headache, the next she was running a high fever, and the day after that, agonizing stomach cramps. It made my blood boil just to look at her. "Thuy! Do you actually want to get married off that badly?! If you are so desperate for a wedding, go right now and forget about taking the exams altogether!" She stirred sleepily, blinking through a haze of exhaustion, her voice raspy. "Sister... I really do feel unwell..."

The situation is looking terribly grim... the female protagonist is undergoing a severe psychological collapse... This is completely wrong! In the original storyline, the female protagonist scores a brilliant 630 points? She is not supposed to crash and burn at this critical juncture! I narrowed my eyes, suspicion prickling at the back of my neck. It was not until evening, when my stepmother routinely brought in a cup of "nourishing" milk, that both I and the ethereal chat commentary finally realized the sinister truth. There is something horribly wrong with that milk! With only a week left until the college entrance examinations, they do not want the female protagonist achieving a high score. They want to drive her straight into a corner so they can force her into a marriage of convenience! Glancing at that sickeningly sweet, maternal facade, an icy shiver ran down my spine. Rich people... why are they even more vicious than the underground fighting rings?!

The moment the woman left the room, I quietly poured the remaining half-cup of milk down the sink. Thuy stared at me in absolute bewilderment. "Sister... are you angry because Mother would not let you drink any? From now on, I will let you have all of mine..." I almost laughed out loud from sheer exasperation. "I appreciate the thought, but that milk is practically laced with poison. Why would you want to pass it on to me?" Thuy’s face drained of color, her eyes welling up with tears as she shook her head vigorously. Over the next few days, I secretly disposed of her portion of the milk every single night, and the results were immediate. Thuy’s rosy complexion quickly returned, and her mind grew noticeably sharper and more alert. It was then that she finally saw through the hypocritical masks of her parents.

On the eve of the college entrance examinations, I used a routine health checkup as an excuse to spirit Thuy away from that suffocating household. Inside a modest, rented room, Thuy sat surrounded by a row of delinquents with dyed blonde hair, every single one of them wearing an expression of grim determination. "Today is our final mock examination. In your hands are the actual exam papers from past years, combined with my carefully curated predictions. If any of you fail to score high enough to enter the top universities after this, do not ever dare claim you know me. It would be utterly humiliating!" I clicked the stopwatch, and the group bowed their heads in unison, immediately plunging into intense focus.

By nightfall, I had graded every single exam sheet myself. Looking over the sea of papers scoring well above seven hundred points, I nodded in profound satisfaction. These are true soldiers forged under my command!

On the morning of the exams, my parents still put on an act of false benevolence, offering patronizing advice to Thuy. "Do not stress if you do not do well, my dear. After all, you are the daughter of the wealthiest family in the country; you always have a comfortable fallback option." "If you find the questions too difficult, just hand in a blank paper and come out early." Thuy said nothing, turning her gaze toward me instead. I gave her a reassuring nod and quietly escorted her into the examination hall.

My stepower immediately latched onto my hand, beaming with delight. "Once your exams are over, Mother will throw a lavish celebration banquet just for you, so the entire world knows which brilliant daughter secured direct admission to the top university!" I forced down the rising nausea in my throat and nodded—truly unable to comprehend what sort of twisted psychology drove such parents.

After the exams concluded, a genuine sigh of relief finally crossed Thuy’s face. "Sister, you can rest easy now... I promise I will not let you down." At the same time, my parents were frantically making preparations for the upcoming celebration. Strangely enough, the number of wealthy suitors visiting our house lately had multiplied tenfold compared to an ordinary month. The matchmaking frenzy only paused when the official exam results were finally released.

The four of us gathered tightly around a single smartphone. I offered Thuy an encouraging smile. "Do not be nervous, check your score. I believe in you!" My parents, however, simply furrowed their brows in tense silence. With trembling fingers, Thuy entered her candidate ID, and just as the blurred digits on the screen cleared — she let out a piercing shriek of sheer ecstasy. "I did it! I actually passed!"

Almost simultaneously, my phone began vibrating incessantly with congratulatory messages. Everyone was immersed in unadulterated joy, save for my parents, whose expressions turned remarkably complicated. Half an hour later, phone calls from university professors started flooding in, each trying desperately to poach the top scorer. Thuy hesitated, unsure which institution to choose. I turned my gaze toward the two silent figures in the room. "Father, Mother, did we not have a wager? I believe I have won."

"Thuy no longer needs to be sacrificed in a political marriage. Furthermore... what about the twenty thousand we agreed upon?" My mother forced a radiant smile as she initiated a digital bank transfer, though her eyes remained chillingly devoid of warmth. "Of course. With two such talented daughters in the household, your father and I could not be prouder." "Tomorrow, both of you must attend the celebration banquet."

Thuy pulled on my sleeve, chattering excitedly throughout the entire evening, while the chat group of blonde delinquents was absolute chaos. That is fantastic, we all passed! The university even offered me a scholarship, so my mother's medical bills are finally covered! I got a scholarship too! I am dying of laughter, social media is saying our city is a complete miracle this year, producing seven or eight top talents more than usual! This is insane! The group overflowed with jubilation, yet my right eyelid kept twitching uncontrollably. Those two people... would they really surrender so easily and abandon their plans for a marriage alliance?

I barely slept a wink all night. The following morning, shortly after the custom-made formal gowns were delivered to our door, the ethereal commentary abruptly returned. Oh heavens, what on earth are this couple plotting, making the daughter they raised wear a completely sheer dress like this to the party?! They never gave up on the arranged marriage at all! They are planning to exploit the female protagonist's academic success to put her up for high-stakes auction at tonight's banquet! Damn it! When will women finally stop being treated like mere commodities?! After studying so hard and enduring all that pressure, her achievements are just being traded away as chips for their own interests — it is utterly infuriating.

A heavy sense of foreboding washed over me. Thuy had already changed into the gown. The sleek dress clung tightly to her figure, undeniably alluring at first glance, but... upon casual inspection, it bore no visible signs of being see-through. "Sister, does it look nice?" She twirled around in front of me, her eyes curving into bright crescents of joy. With less than half a day left before the banquet commenced, what on earth should I do?

I forced myself to remain calm, sweeping my gaze across the room — nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Finally, I marched over and drew the heavy curtains shut. "Sister... why are you closing the curtains in broad daylight?" I ignored her question and immediately switched on the flashlight feature of my phone. Under the direct, concentrated beam of light, the intricate layers of sheer fabric suddenly revealed themselves in terrifying clarity.

What the...

I nearly cursed out loud, narrowly remembering the invisible audience watching my every move. Quickly switching off the flashlight, I grabbed Thuy by the arm. "Look at this yourself." Realizing that the material became entirely transparent under strong illumination, Thuy’s knees nearly buckled. "My parents... how could they do this to me..." "Sister, what do we do? They still want to sell me off, and now they even want to... to let everyone see my body..." "I have always loved them as my real parents..." "Can we... can we call the police?"

"No." I refused without a single shred of hesitation. Thuy’s face darkened instantly. "That is true... if we involve the authorities and they get into trouble, it will reflect poorly on you..." I shook my head, letting out a cold, bitter laugh. "If it is you today, it could easily be me tomorrow. In their eyes, we are nothing more than instruments to be bartered for power and wealth."

"When I said no to the police, I meant something else — we are going to play a much bigger game!" I locked eyes with Thuy. "Have you given a definitive answer to the university professors yet?" She shook her head, whispering, "I heard the faculty members were flying in today to meet me in person." "Send me their flight details."

The moment I received the arrival schedule, I forwarded it straight to the delinquent crew. "You three, get to the airport right now and intercept that professor for tonight's banquet! Bring him here by any means necessary!" "Remember — use your brains, not your fists. Do not embarrass me in front of my future mentors!" Recognizing the gravity of the situation concerning Thuy, the boys instantly sobered up. "Don't worry, Boss! Your sister is our sister too!"

I picked up a commemorative wooden ruler, tapping it rhythmically against the table while deep in thought. A university professor alone... might not be enough insurance. I continued, "Is it still possible to set up a livestream channel right now? The rest of you, figure out a way to boost viewership. Tonight, we are broadcasting the entire banquet live so the whole world can bear witness."

The boys nodded vigorously, their fighting spirit reignited. "No problem at all!" Before they departed, I inspected the four streaming accounts they had hastily created — each already boasted at least a hundred thousand followers. Curious, I clicked on their top-trending posts and nearly choked to death on my own saliva. The most popular articles read:

My mother-in-law insists on bathing with my husband, fellow sisters what should I do??

Help me, my husband is forcing me to undergo artificial insemination for twins!

Meeting my online lover tonight, broadcasting the date live starting at 9 PM sharp!

...I: ......

I never expected these hooligans to be absolute masters of clickbait and traffic manipulation. They were truly... unorthodox talents.